translated, it means "while i'm running." basically this is anything that comes to mind that may or may not be related to running.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
a very late update: a beast of a monsoon hits the 09 chimera 100
Dec. 12, 2009
The problem with recapping events a year after it's happened is that sometimes you forget details, or in this case forget about the event itself. My apologies to RD Steve Harvey, but here's what happened from our point of view at the Trabuco Gate aid station of the inaugural Chimera 100 Race.
The Chimera 100 logo featured a fearsome beast which undoubtedly made its presence known through the elements that the race had to deal with. So I was wondering what the aid station situation was gonna be like. Were we going to assemble the EZ ups in the rain and get soaked in the process? Much to my delight, when Skip and I arrived at the Trabuco gate, we saw a fully enclosed tent cabin waiting for us. There was even a little space heater in there. Inside were the volunteers already setting up -- Eric K. and his mom on the ham, Marla H., the twins, Corry and Kelly, and Deirdre E. prepping the aid station food. I gotta commend Deirdre; she took charge of getting the food and drinks ready, and before too long, the aid station was ready for our first runners to come by in no time at all. It was like she was running a mess hall – such efficiency.
The first runner to come by was… hmmm, it's been a year now, so not really sure. I think it might have been Hal Koerner, though I could very well be wrong. He may not even have been running that race. Anywhoo (as my midwestern sister-in-law would say), he just cruised on by and waved at us. The next runner wasn't going to be here for a while.
The rest of the morning was spent waiting and amusing ourselves so we would forget how wet and cold we were. But the rain and the wind were just too strong to ignore. Think downpours and gale force winds. It wasn't stopping and there were no signs that it was going to let up. There was so much precipitation that our tent was leaking everywhere. To protect our ham radio equipment from our indoor condensation, we rigged up an umbrella right over it.
We slowly had some runners trickling in, and most of them were wearing some of the biggest smiles. The endorphins must've been really kicking in because I wouldn't be that happy running in those conditions. Or maybe they've been miserable the last couple of hours that seeing our aid station probably lifted their spirits. Whatever the reason may have been, they were extremely grateful. I saw several friends, most of whom asked me why I wasn't running. The knee, I said. A few minutes later, they were off.
I was thinking about my friends, Molly and Michelle who were taking over the afternoon and night shift. If the conditions continue to deteriorate, I didn't think it would be safe for anyone to be out here at night.
We heard over the ham that one of the aid station tents was blown away. I thought, uh-oh, I have a feeling that the whole race itself will DNF. At about noon, we got the official word that the race had indeed been called off.
We packed up, closed up the aid station and headed back down the hill to the relative safety and comfort of race HQ at Blue Jay Campground.
Sorry for the late report, Chimera. How could I possibly have forgotten about you.
Labels:
Chimera 100,
friends,
public service,
race,
video,
volunteer
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
recapping the last year – 1 of 2, otherwise known as the rest of 2009
OK, when I mentioned in my last post that I was going to retire from ultras, I was just being facetious. I didn't mean it. I meant to come back the following year and get back into it. But somehow it must've been a self-fulfilling prophecy. More than a year after that post, I have not run any ultras, but that's not to say I've exactly been laying around.
So to dust this blog off once again is a recap of last year's adventures and races which I'll break into two posts.
2009 San Juan Capistrano 10K Trail Run
October 3, 2009
Since Mt. Dis, I've been on and off running so I haven't been in the best shape. When I saw this race, I thought that this would be a great way to get back into racing again. I've never run a 10K before – road or trail – so I was pretty excited about doing this run.
The race is sponsored by the City of San Juan Capistrano and the local Rotary Club. The R.D. for the event was the infamous Baz Hawley who's been around the local trail running community since around the time when Orange County actually had oranges. Because this was a family event in the 'burbs and the mayor of SJC was present, as well as a ranger whose name isn't Virgil, Baz struggled in choosing his words carefully rather than spontaneously spouting off his normally colorful language. And he behaved long enough to keep his hands to himself; the young ladies were safe for now. It was a hoot to see him there, especially under those conditions. A few familiar faces were also present – my favorite Czech runner, David C., Charlie, and rocket scientist Doug aka iDad also ran the race.
The hills proved to be challenging for me, but the nice wide fire roads were a lot of fun to run on. I finished the race in 1:04:07 (45th out of 90). It certainly wasn't the best time, but that didn't stop me from stealing David's 2nd place trophy when he wasn't looking and posing with it for a photo op. David, you gotta keep a closer eye on your hardware next time.
How I schemed to get my hands on that trophy.
Grand Canyon Rim to Rim
October 17-20, 2009
Croc Lady Lo of the SoCal Trail Headz organized a trip for several runners to meet up at the Grand Canyon to do a Rim to Rim run. The idea is to start from the South Rim, descend more than 5,000 feet down to the Grand Canyon then come back up to the South Rim again. If you were hardy enough, or crazy enough, or both, you do the Double Crossing where you head up to the North Rim instead, before turning back around to descend back down to cross the Colorado River again before climbing out of that big hole up to the South Rim. I'd say it's about a gazillion feet of climbing and an equal number of miles. Ok, it's really about 45 miles and somewhere in the neighborhood of about 10,000 feet of elevation gain.
But because I'm a lazy bum, I opted for the short route. Doug and I started from Mather Campground which was a few miles from the top of the Kaibab Trail. Running down was a blast. We passed several hikers, but we also stopped a few times to enjoy the beauty of the canyon and take some pictures. To get from the rim down to Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon took us about 2.5 hours. Doug and I each enjoyed a cold Tecate at the Ranch where we saw Sue, Greg, and Jon.
After a nice lunch and relaxing for like forever, we headed our way back up, this time taking the Bright Angel Trail. Sue, Greg and Jon sped up the trail, while Doug and I opted for a more relaxed pace. It took us about 5 hours to get back up to the South Rim. All in all, Doug's measurements came back with a 23 mile day and about 4600' of climbing. As a long distance runner, the Rim to Rim has to rank up there as one of those must do's – truly epic!
Click here for more Grand Canyon photos and Doug's recap of the day.
Superheroes Run
October 31, 2009
Jeff S., aka the amazing hip, put out a call for superheroes (the non-commercial kind) to come out and protect the dangerous streets of Corona del Mar and Newport Beach from would be evil doers. Three crime fighters reported for duty – the amazing hip, sooper aqua dump and e-rod (yours truly) on Halloween morning. They were joined by Shannon Shenanigans, who was with her hubby and their little daughter, Andrea, and Michelle Mayhem to document this most prodigious event.
We ran along PCH where we encountered an alien life form (ALF) much to the entertainment of drivers, cyclists and Starbucks customers. We continued our patrol of this crime-ridden neighborhood on Newport Center Drive up to Fashion Island, a place where humor and Halloween apparently don't exist. We were determined to change that, but alas! Even three superheroes don't stand a chance against the man – the FI mall cops. We were told there's no Halloween at the mall and that flying (er, running on walls) was not allowed – so off with the masks (which compromised our true identities) and harsh instructions to leave by walking like mere mortals.
Fortunately, our partners in this world saving enterprise, this time joined by Molly Mischief and daughter, Payton, were there to record the whole thing.
Enjoy the video and Jeff's recap of the event.
The recap for 2010 is coming soon...
So to dust this blog off once again is a recap of last year's adventures and races which I'll break into two posts.
2009 San Juan Capistrano 10K Trail Run
October 3, 2009
Ah, yes! It feels great to hold the trophy for 2nd place overall.
Next time, I'm going for 1st place.
Next time, I'm going for 1st place.
Since Mt. Dis, I've been on and off running so I haven't been in the best shape. When I saw this race, I thought that this would be a great way to get back into racing again. I've never run a 10K before – road or trail – so I was pretty excited about doing this run.
The race is sponsored by the City of San Juan Capistrano and the local Rotary Club. The R.D. for the event was the infamous Baz Hawley who's been around the local trail running community since around the time when Orange County actually had oranges. Because this was a family event in the 'burbs and the mayor of SJC was present, as well as a ranger whose name isn't Virgil, Baz struggled in choosing his words carefully rather than spontaneously spouting off his normally colorful language. And he behaved long enough to keep his hands to himself; the young ladies were safe for now. It was a hoot to see him there, especially under those conditions. A few familiar faces were also present – my favorite Czech runner, David C., Charlie, and rocket scientist Doug aka iDad also ran the race.
The hills proved to be challenging for me, but the nice wide fire roads were a lot of fun to run on. I finished the race in 1:04:07 (45th out of 90). It certainly wasn't the best time, but that didn't stop me from stealing David's 2nd place trophy when he wasn't looking and posing with it for a photo op. David, you gotta keep a closer eye on your hardware next time.
How I schemed to get my hands on that trophy.
Grand Canyon Rim to Rim
October 17-20, 2009
Somewhere along the Kaibab Trail.
Croc Lady Lo of the SoCal Trail Headz organized a trip for several runners to meet up at the Grand Canyon to do a Rim to Rim run. The idea is to start from the South Rim, descend more than 5,000 feet down to the Grand Canyon then come back up to the South Rim again. If you were hardy enough, or crazy enough, or both, you do the Double Crossing where you head up to the North Rim instead, before turning back around to descend back down to cross the Colorado River again before climbing out of that big hole up to the South Rim. I'd say it's about a gazillion feet of climbing and an equal number of miles. Ok, it's really about 45 miles and somewhere in the neighborhood of about 10,000 feet of elevation gain.
But because I'm a lazy bum, I opted for the short route. Doug and I started from Mather Campground which was a few miles from the top of the Kaibab Trail. Running down was a blast. We passed several hikers, but we also stopped a few times to enjoy the beauty of the canyon and take some pictures. To get from the rim down to Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon took us about 2.5 hours. Doug and I each enjoyed a cold Tecate at the Ranch where we saw Sue, Greg, and Jon.
After a nice lunch and relaxing for like forever, we headed our way back up, this time taking the Bright Angel Trail. Sue, Greg and Jon sped up the trail, while Doug and I opted for a more relaxed pace. It took us about 5 hours to get back up to the South Rim. All in all, Doug's measurements came back with a 23 mile day and about 4600' of climbing. As a long distance runner, the Rim to Rim has to rank up there as one of those must do's – truly epic!
Click here for more Grand Canyon photos and Doug's recap of the day.
Superheroes Run
October 31, 2009
Jeff S., aka the amazing hip, put out a call for superheroes (the non-commercial kind) to come out and protect the dangerous streets of Corona del Mar and Newport Beach from would be evil doers. Three crime fighters reported for duty – the amazing hip, sooper aqua dump and e-rod (yours truly) on Halloween morning. They were joined by Shannon Shenanigans, who was with her hubby and their little daughter, Andrea, and Michelle Mayhem to document this most prodigious event.
We ran along PCH where we encountered an alien life form (ALF) much to the entertainment of drivers, cyclists and Starbucks customers. We continued our patrol of this crime-ridden neighborhood on Newport Center Drive up to Fashion Island, a place where humor and Halloween apparently don't exist. We were determined to change that, but alas! Even three superheroes don't stand a chance against the man – the FI mall cops. We were told there's no Halloween at the mall and that flying (er, running on walls) was not allowed – so off with the masks (which compromised our true identities) and harsh instructions to leave by walking like mere mortals.
Fortunately, our partners in this world saving enterprise, this time joined by Molly Mischief and daughter, Payton, were there to record the whole thing.
Enjoy the video and Jeff's recap of the event.
The recap for 2010 is coming soon...
Labels:
10K,
Grand Canyon,
halloween,
humor,
rim to rim,
running,
superheroes,
video
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)